People with dementia living in the community are likely to be disproportionately affected by social distancing, isolation and lockdown measures.
WISERD’s Civil Society Centre Director, Professor Ian Rees Jones, is part of the ‘Improving the experience of Dementia and Enhancing Active Life’ research programme (IDEAL project). Based on research findings, the team has recently published two leaflets on how to stay well during the Coronavirus outbreak, for people with dementia and their family members or other supporters providing unpaid care. These are now available to view on our website.
The downloadable leaflets are part of the ‘IDEAL COVID-19 Dementia Initiative’, which aims to help people with dementia and their carers to manage the psychological and social impact of the pandemic and its consequences, such as social distancing, self-isolation and lockdown. They include five key messages and simple suggestions for how to:
1) Stay safe and well
2) Stay connected
3) Keep a sense of purpose
4) Stay active
5) Stay positive
The leaflets also include a list of the most reliable sources of information, including websites and telephone support lines. These resources will be reviewed and updated over the coming months, taking account of the concerns people with dementia and carers are expressing in a range of forums and in telephone interviews conducted by IDEAL programme researchers.
Preparation of the leaflet was funded by the National Institute for Health Research. The support of NHIR is gratefully acknowledged. Project partners include: NIHR Older People and Frailty Policy Research Unit; Alzheimer’s Society; Innovations in Dementia; NIHR Applied Research Collaboration South-West Peninsula; University of Exeter; Manchester University; Bradford University; Brunel University London; Swansea University.